Toothpick-machine.



A. 11. HALL. TOUTHPIGK MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 20, 1914- mm 1 W m m r? m w J 1 W0 COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0. WASHINGTON, n c.

A. H. HALL.

v TOOTHPIOK MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 20, 1914.

1,100,431 Patented June 16,1914.

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A. .H. HALL.

TOOTHPIGK MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED MAB..20, 1914.

1,100,431, Patented June 16, 1914.

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Q k {7 77 M ALBERT HENRY HALL, OF WEST PERU, MAINE.

- TOOTI-IPICK-MACHI'NE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Julie 16, 1914.

Application filed March 20, 1914. Serial No. 826,117.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ALBERT H. HALL, of West Peru, in the county of Oxford and State of Maine, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in ToothpicloMachines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to splint machines such as are adapted for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips.

The type of machine of which I make use is such as is commonly used in making matches and includes means for feeding a stack of veneer strips of considerable width to a vertically reciprocating knife which cuts or slices splints from the end of the stack with scoring knives for cutting the splints into short lengths.

The toothpicks which my invention is designed to produce are those having thin, flat ends, each half of the toothpick being substantially wedge-shaped and the thickness being uniform in the direction of the thickness of the veneer strip. Hitherto these toothpicks have commonly been made by cutting them one at a time from a single strip of veneer by forcing the veneer down onto a double knife having an opening the exact shape of the toothpick. While the machines ran at a high rate of speed the process was relatively slow and the toothpicks were not of desirable shape or finish.

The object of my invention is to produce toothpicks more rapidly and of better shape and finish than they have been produced with the old single machine. I accomplish this object by means of the mechanism hereinafter described and claimed.

In a general way my invention embodies a reciprocating cutting knife having a plurality of shallow corrugations each having the form of one edge of the toothpick with means for shifting the knife with respect to the veneer strip one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the knife. The shape of the corrugations is such that the entire body of the veneer strip is formed into toothpicks without waste except at the edge of the strip where half a toothpick is wasted at each reciprocation of the knife.

My invention maybest be understood by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which is shown a toothpick machine containing one embodiment of my invention but I 3 is a perspective view of the lower cutting plate, Fig. 4 is a perspective detail of the knife and its supporting parts, Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the way in which the simplest form of toothpicks are cut, Fig. 6 is a detail of the vertical feed rolls, Fig. 7 is a detail of the pressure roll, Fig. 8 is a section onthe line m a: of Fig. 2, Fig. 9, is a diagram showing the line of the cutting edge of the knife in its preferable form and the lines on which the veneer is out, Fig. 10 is an enlarged diagram of the cutting edge of the knife showin a complete single corrugation and one half of the adjacent corrugations, Fig. 11 is a like diagram of an alternate form, and Fig. 12 is a side elevation of he machine.

Similar letters throughout the drawings indicate similar parts.

The veneer strips which are wide enough so that a plurality of toothpicks may be cut from the forward edge of each are fed to the knife in stacks. In practice I cut the strips 28% inches wide and feed them in stacks of pieces, each piece about 12 feet in length. As herein shown the veneer strips 1 are fed in over a bed 2 supported in a suitable frame 8 which also supports the moving portions of the machine. The vertical feed rolls 4 and 5 are disposed at each side of the stack. The rolls are corrugated and one of them is provided with means whereby it is forced with heavy pressure against the edges of the veneer strips to form a positive intermittent feed. The roll 5 is journaled in stationary bearings in the frame of the machine above the bed 2 but the opposite roll 4 is journaled in the inner ends of two horizontally disposed bars 6 and 7 which extend through the frame of the machine and both are capable of a sliding movement in and out. These bars and the roll are moved in and out by a screw 8 engagin a screw threaded opening in the frame of the machine and they are journaled in a yoke 9 connecting the outer ends of the bars 6 and 7. The screw is provided with a crank and handle 10 by turning which the screw is made to move the roll in either direction. In practice the rolls are tightened so that their fluted or corrugated surfaces will take a firm hold on the sides of the stack, feeding it without slip.

Power is imparted to the feed rolls by a shaft 11 journaled beneath the bed 2 and carrying at each end a bevel gear which engages a bevel gear on the lower end of the roll shafts. As shown in Fig. 6, the gear 12 is splined on the shaft 11 and engages the .gear 13 on the lower end of the shaft of the roll 4. The shaft 11 has one of its hearings on the inner end of the bar 7 which is turned down for this purpose. Thus as the feed roll is forced in or out by the screw the gear 12 follows and always remains in engagement with the gear 13. Intermittent motion is imparted to the shaft 11 by a reciprocating pawl 20 which engages a ratchet wheel 19 on the end of the shaft 11. This pawl is pivoted to a lever 21, one arm of which is in position to be struck by a cam 23 on the main shaft 24 which is ournaled at the top of the machine. A spring 25 holds the pawl 20 into engagement with the ratchet wheel 19. Means are provided for exerting a pressure on the stack of veneer strips at a point immediately in rear of the knife and for relieving this pressure while the stack is being fed forward. For this purpose I provide a pressure roll 14 journaled in a roll carrier 15 which is held in guides 16 so that it is capable of limited vertical motion. A constant spring pressure is exerted on the carrier tending to force it down onto the top of the stack. As here shown this spring pressure is exerted by a spring 18 secured to a lever 17 pivoted to the frame of the machine and to the roll carrier 15. The tension of the spring thus acts to force the carrier downwardly. This tension is intermittently relieved while the feed rolls are working. As

here shown two arms 27 are pivoted to the roll carrier 15, one being secured at each end of a shaft 26 which extends across the machine. On the shaft 26 is a gear 28 which is engaged by a gear segment 29 journaled on a shaft 30. Connected with the segment and extending on the opposite side of the shaft is an arm 31 having on its end an antifriction roll 82. The roll is in position to be struck by a cam 33 on the main shaft 24. The depression of the roll 32 lifts the roll carrier 15 and relieves the tension of the feed roll. The cam 23 which actuates the feeding mechanism and the cam 33 which lifts the pressure roll are so placed on the shaft that they will act alternately so that when the stack is stationary and the knife is cutting, the feed rolls will not be working but the pressure roll will be forced down onto the stacks. On the other hand, when the feed rolls are moving the stack the pres sure roll will be lifted. The knife which has a cutting edge forming waves or shallow corrugations is carried in a vertically reciprocable frame and means are provided for shifting it longitudinally one half the length of a toothpick whereby the concave portion forming two adjacent ends on one cut forms the convex portion of the toothpicks on the next cut. The knife is carried by a knife block to which it is immediately secured and this block is carried in a vertically reciprocating knife frame in which it is horizontally slidable.

As herein shown, the frame 34 slides in suitable guides 35 in the frame of the machine. It is reciprocated by a connecting rod 35 by which it is connected with a crank on the shaft 24. The knife 36 is fastened to a knife block 37 which is carried by the frame 34 and the lower portion of the block 37 is held in suitable guides 38 in the bottom of the frame 34 and is slidable longitudinally a limited distance within the frame. The upper portion of the knife block 37 has a sliding connection with the top of the frame. Two arms 39 are formed integral with the top of the frame and their upper ends allow the passage of a pin 40 which forms the pivoting point of the connecting rod 35. A pin 41 extends loosely through the lower ends of the arms 39. Two similar arms 42 are secured to the upper portion of the knife block 37 outside of the arms 39 and their lower ends are firmly secured to the ends of the pin 41. The upper ends of the arms 42 slide freely on the pin 40. The parts last described form a slidable connection between the knife frame and the knife block allowing the knife block to slide hori- Zontally within the frame. The knife 36 is secured to the upper portion of the knife block on the inside and it has a corrugated cutting edge hereinafter more particularly described.

A cutting block or other abutment is provided against which the edge of the knife may act to properly sever the line of tooth picks. I prefer to make use of a cutting plate having a shearing edge of the exact form of the cutting edge of the knife. As shown the cutting plate 43 has on its under side a tongue which fits into a groove 44 in the bed of the machine. The forward edge of the cutting plate is corrugated to correspond with the corrugations of the knife and means are provided to connect the cutting plate with the knife block whereby the horizontal motion of the latter may be imparted to the cutting plate. For this purpose I seeure to the cutting plate a projection 45 which fits into a vertical groove 40 in the knife block. Thus as the knife block reciprocates from side to side the cutting plate follows its motion and is always in position to receive the knife and to effect a shearing cut with it.

- stack.

Scoring knives are provided for scoring the splint to separate the toothpicks. For this purpose I provide a series of scoring knives 48 below the cutting knife these scoring knives being fixed to a bar 47 secured to the knife block. The knife block is reciprocated as here shown by means of an eccentric 49 secured to the lower end of a vertical shaft 50. The eccentric rotates in a cavity in the knife block having parallel sides and the result is a reciprocating motion of the knife block in one direction at each half turn of the shaft. The shaft is intermittently rotated a half revolution by means of a spiral gear 51 splined to the shaft 50, said gear engaging a like gear 52 on a counter shaft 53. A sectional gear 54 on the main shaft 24: engages a gear 55 on the shaft 53 and these gears are so arranged that the shaft 50 is turned a half revolution while the knife is raised above the stack of veneer strips and before it again begins to cut on its descent, the traverse of the knife being somewhat greater than the thickness of the The cutting edge of the knife is formed into a series of equal shallow corrugations each of which takes the form of one edge of the toothpick and this form is such as to cut the toothpicks from the veneer strips without Waste. In order to do this the corrugations must be equal and regular with reference to a central line.

In Fig. 9 I have shown at 36 an exaggerated representation of the cutting line, the

' dotted lines a, a are the successive cuts in the veneer and b b is the center line of the corrugations. The corrugations must be equal and regular with respect to the center line in this instance each being a circular arc. Where the corrugations are formed by regular and equal circular curves the line from the center to the end of the toothpick will be a. reverse curve and a thin slightly tapering point will be given to the toothpick which is exceeding desirable.

In Fig. 10 I have shown one complete corrugation on an enlarged scale and one half of the two adjacent corrugations. If a line is drawn from g in the center of one corrugation to z in the center of the next opposite corrugation the curve of the cutting line must pass through the center it and be equal and opposite on the two halves of this line. From center to center the line is a reversed curve. The cutting line is not necessarily a curved line as shown in Figs. 9 and 10 but it may be a line made up of straight lines as shown in Fig. 11 or the cut ting line may extend straight from the center of one corrugation to the center of the next opposite corrugation as shown in form of toothpick illustrated in Fig. 5. Instead of using a cutting plate having an edge conforming to the corrugations of the knife the knife may be made to out directly onto a fiat cutting block or onto the bed of the machine in the well known manner. The feeding or bringing together of the stack of veneer strips and the knife and the lateral reciprocation of the knife with. respect to the veneer strips may be effected otherwise than as herein shown. 7

The machine is capable of producing a great quantity of toothpicks of excellent quality and with very little waste of stock.

In practice one machine turns out approximately 67,500 toothpicks per minute.

I claim 1. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips the combination of a reciprocating knife, the cutting edge of which forms a series of shallow corrugations each of which has the form of one edge of the toothpick, and means for shifting said knife longitudinally with respect to the veneer strip one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the knife.

2. In a splint machine of the character de scribed for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips the combination of a reciprocating knife, the cutting edge of which forms a series of shallow corrugations each of which has the form of one edge of the toothpick, means for shifting said knife longitudinally with respect to the veneer strip one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the knife and scoring blades for separating the toothpicks. v

3. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips, the combination of a reciprocating knife having a series of shallow corrugations each of which has the form of one edge of the toothpick, feeding means and means for shifting said knife longitudinally with respect to the veneer strip one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the blade.

4. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips the combination of a reciprocating knife having a series of shallow corrugations each of which has the form of one edge of the toothpick, feeding means, a cutting plate against which said knife shears and means for shifting said knife and cutting plate longitudinally one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the knife.

5. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips, the combination of a reciprocating knife block, a slot in said block, a knife carried by said block having a series of shallow corrugations each of which has the form of one edge of the toothpick, feeding means, a longitudinally sliding cutting plate against which said knife shears, a projection on said cutting plate engaging said slot and means for shifting said knife block one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the knife block.

6. A splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks including a knife for cutting a plurality of toothpicks from the edge of a veneer strip the cutting edge of said knife forming a series of shallow corrugations equal and regular on each side of a center line.

7. A splint machine of the character described including a knife for cutting a plurality of toothpicks from the edge of a veneer strip, the cutting edge of said knife having a series of shallow corrugations equal and regular on each side of a center line, the cutting edge extending from the center of one corrugation to the center of the next corrugation forming substantially a reverse curve.

8. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips the combination of a vertically reciprocating knife frame, a horizontally reciprocable knife block carried by said knife frame, a knife carried by said knife block having a series of shallow corrugations each the form of one edge of the toothpick and means for reciprocating said knife block one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of'the knife frame.

9. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks from veneer strips the combination of a ver'ically reciprocating knife frame, a horizontally reciprocable knife block carried by said knife frame, a knife carried by said knife block having a series of shallow corrugations each the form of one edge of the toothpick, a vertical eccentric shaft j ournaled in said knife frame, an eccentric on the lower end of said shaft, an eccentric cavity in said knife block in which said eccentric rotates and means for imparting half a rotation to said shaft at each reciprocation of said frame.

10. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks, the combination of a vertically reciprocating knife frame, a horizontally reciprocable knife block carried by said knife frame, a knife carried by said knife block having a series of shallow corrugations each having the form of one edge of a toothpick, a series of scoring knives carried by said knife block and means for reciprocating said knife block one half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the knife frame.

11. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks, the combination of a vertically reciprocating knife, said knife having a series of shallow corrugations each of which is the form of one edge of a toothpick, a bed for supporting a stack of veneer strips, a vertically disposed feed roll at each side of said bed for intermittently feeding the stack of veneer strips to the knife, a pressure roll for holding the veneer strips in place and means for reciprocating the knife horizontally one half the length of a toothpick at each rcciprocation of the knife.

12. In a splint machine of the character described for cutting toothpicks, the combination of a vertically reciprocating knife, said knife having a series of shallow corrugations each of which forms one edge of a toothpick, a bed for supporting a stack of veneer strips, feeding means for intermittent-1y feeding the stack of veneer strips to said knife, a pressure device for exerting pressure on the stack of veneer strips adjacent to said knife, means for releasing said pressure device while the stack is feeding and means for reciprocating the knife horizontally with respect to the veneer strips half the length of a toothpick at each reciprocation of the knife.

In testimony whereof I have allixed my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

ALBERT HENRY HALL.

IVitnesses ELIsHA L. STETSON, ARTHUR U. S'rowELL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington- 'D. C. 

